Category:Buildings in New York City

New York City, NY

Kalahari Harlem on West 116th Street, north of Central Park, has a bold and very decorative motif on its outer facade inspired by the art of Africa. This is also influenced by its name. Kalahari Harlem consists of two 12 story mixed use buildings that collectively hold 249 apartments, 148 in the building on 116th Street, referred to as 'Tower A', and 101 units in 'Tower B'.

Kalahari Harlem's 'green' marketing slogan

Ownership and occupancy has been governed to include 129 of the apartments to be available at market rate having no restrictions on income or assets. The remaining 120 units will be more "affordable" in that they are subsidized based on household income not exceeding 185% of the area median income. Additionally, the "affordable" apartments only require a 5% down payment.

Kalahari Harlem proudly makes it known that they are a 'Green Building' and strong efforts were taken to create an environmentally responsible structure. From air purification systems to solar panels that supplement power consumption, Kalahari Harlem has gone to great lengths to make this a 'green building'. Even the marketing logo seen in this section makes this fact known.[1]

Location

Kalahari Harlem is located in Upper Manhattan, often referred to as Uptown, in an area known as Harlem. Harlem itself is subdivided into three parts, Central Harlem, West Harlem, and East Harlem. The history of Harlem dates back to the mid 1600s. Early Dutch settlers named the area Nieuw Haarlem after the Dutch city of Haarlem. In 1664, the English took control of the area and tried to change the name of the area to "Lancaster". It did not take hold and the anglicized version, Harlem remained.

General map of Harlem showing boundaries

The Central Harlem boundaries extend roughly from Central Park at the south end to the Harlem River at the north. It is bounded at the east by Fifth Avenue and on the west by Morningside Park, Saint Nicholas and Edgecombe Avenues. The northern edge of what is perhaps the most famous urban park in the world, Central Park, follows 110th Street, just six short blocks from Kalahari Harlem. Other open spaces include the Marcus Garvey Memorial Park, Martin Luther King Playground, and the Samuel Triangle, a nice shady spot to have rest and watch the people.

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